Smark Out Moment

The WWE may have their Slammy Awards, but here at Smark Out Moment we like to take an even closer look at what happened throughout the year and award not just the best, but also point out the worst, and that applies to both what World Wrestling Entertainment had to offer you this year, as well as what happened on this site and the Smack Talk podcast.


Make sure you let us know in the comments what your choices are for the best and the worst of each award in all of the WWE divisions (Technical Skills, Writing, Programming, On-Air Personalities, and Wrestlers) and be sure to vote on the polls set up for the Smack Talk Awards section!

Official voting ends around Christmas, so don't forget to voice your opinion by filling out this poll!


As always, we tweak things from year to year with 2017 being no different. This time around, we've added the categories of Attire and On-Screen Couple, consolidated many of the Programming Awards, and got rid of the Release/Suspension category as well as the Recurring Joke and Outro.

Let us know what you think of the new setup and if you'd like to see any changes for next year.

Without further ado, let's start reviewing this year in WWE!


ENTRANCE

Explanation: This award should take into account everything including pyro, lighting, music, what the superstars do during their entrances, and so on. Your choices can be a singular entrance in particular (such as their upgraded WrestleMania one) or someone's standard entrance that happens every time he/she comes to the ring.

[BEST]: Chris Jericho's Festival of Friendship entrance

[WORST]: Big Cass

CLOTHING / ATTIRE

Explanation: Who has the best and worst outfits, whether it's just what they wear during their entrance or if it's their normal ring gear?

[BEST]: Billie Kay

[WORST]: Killian Dain

SIGNATURE MANEUVER

Explanation: What is your favorite and least favorite regularly seen wrestling move was that had been featured multiple times as something on a superstar's repertoire. Typically, these are finishers (such as the Attitude Adjustment) but it could also be a signature setup (such as the Five Knuckle Shuffle) or something along those lines.

[BEST]: Neville's Rings of Saturn

[WORST]: Bayley-to-Belly

SPOT / BOTCH

Explanation: What was the most entertaining spot and what was the biggest disaster of a botch that happened this year?

[BEST/COOLEST SPOT]: Braun Strowman flips an ambulance on Monday Night Raw (April 10th)

[WORST/BIGGEST BOTCH]: Cesaro gets his teeth pushed up at No Mercy

RECOGNITION

Explanation: Perception is everything, so which superstar deserved more credit this year than they received and which superstar was unworthy of all the praise he or she received?

[MOST UNDERRATED]: Mickie James

[MOST OVERRATED]: Finn Balor

IMPROVEMENT IN A SUPERSTAR

Explanation: Which superstar improved their work and saw the biggest upgrade and who saw the biggest downgrade in terms of a regression of their performance, spot on the roster, quality of value and so forth?

[BIGGEST UPGRADE]: Drew Gulak

[BIGGEST DOWNGRADE]: The Revival

RING WORK

Explanation: Which two superstars were the best and the worst when performing in the ring?

[BEST]: AJ Styles

[WORST]: Dana Brooke

MIC WORK

Explanation: Who had the best and worst promo skills, charisma, and performing as an entertaining character with all of the verbal aspects of WWE.

[BEST]: The Miz

[WORST]: Tamina

TITLE REIGN

Explanation: Who had the most meaningful time with a championship to their name, where the matches were good, the feuds were interesting, and you were enjoying their reign, as well as who failed to meet those expectations and perhaps had a boring, uneventful, bad run with a belt.

POSSIBLE OPTIONS: all of the title reigns on this list

[BEST]: Brock Lesnar (Universal Championship)

[WORST]: Sasha Banks (Raw Women's Championship)

MATCH OF THE YEAR

Explanation: Matches can be from any show, including Raw, SmackDown, NXT, Main Event, 205 Live, pay-per-views and special events.

[BEST]: AJ Styles vs John Cena (Royal Rumble), AOP vs Revival vs #DIY (TakeOver: Orlando), Tyler Bate vs. Pete Dunne (TakeOver: Chicago), Reigns vs. Strowman Ambulance Match (Great Balls of Fire), Aleister Black vs. The Velveteen Dream (TakeOver: WarGames)

[WORST]: House of Horrors match, Bayley vs. Alexa Bliss (Extreme Rules), Rachel Evers vs. Marti Belle (Mae Young Classic round 1)



CATCH PHRASE or SLOGAN

Explanation: This includes any kind of regularly mentioned slogan, taunt, catch phrase, signature sign-off or any verbal sayings of those sorts.

[BEST]: "I'm not finished with you" + "My PowerPoint presentation!"

[WORST]: "Survivor Series is the one time a year where Raw and SmackDown go head-to-head in competition!"

GIMMICK

Explanation: Which superstars portrayed the best and the worst characters this year?

[BEST]: Drew Gulak for a better 205 Live

[WORST]: Emmalina

HEEL or FACE TURN

Explanation: The Best/Worst Heel or Face Turn award asks which character turn (whether it was from heel to face or face to heel doesn't matter) was the most effective and interesting and which one was stupid and a mistake.

POSSIBLE OPTIONS: all heel and face turns are on this list

[BEST]: Enzo Amore's heel turn

[WORST]: Dana Brooke's multiple turns back and forth

LEGEND COMEBACK

Explanation: This award revolves around the old school wrestlers who aren't a regular part of the roster and made a temporary return. This excludes people who became a regular part of the fold like Kurt Angle. Which was your favorite to see make an appearance and which one were you less than thrilled about?

POSSIBLE OPTIONS: Shawn Michaels (Raw 1/9), Gillberg (Raw 2/13), Cowboy Bob Orton and other legends (Money in the Bank), The Great Khali (Battleground), Arn Anderson (SmackDown 8/8)

[BEST]: Gillberg (Raw 2/13)

[WORST]: Money in the Bank legends

IMPROVEMENT IN A DIVISION

Explanation: Which section of the WWE hierarchy became more entertaining than it was last year and which one fell by the wayside and downgraded?

POSSIBLE OPTIONS: Legends, Main Event (Raw/SmackDown/NXT), Midcard (Raw/SmackDown/NXT), Tag Team (Raw/SmackDown/NXT), Women (Raw/SmackDown/NXT), Cruiserweight, Enhancement (Raw/SmackDown/NXT), United Kingdom

[BIGGEST UPGRADE]: United Kingdom

[BIGGEST DOWNGRADE]: Legends

MOST SHOCKING MOMENT

Explanation: What was the absolute biggest surprise you had this entire year that you didn't see coming?

[MOST SHOCKING MOMENT]: AJ Styles defeats Kevin Owens to win the United States Championship at July 7th live event

SMARK OUT MOMENTS

Explanation: What did you consider to be the overall best and worst things to have happened this year? What was the coolest thing to make you happy as a fan and which moment was so horrible that it made you the most disappointed with WWE?

[BEST]: Undertaker's retirement and Roman Reigns "this is my yard now" follow-up promo

[WORST]: "Bayley: This is Your Life" segment

STORYLINE

Explanation: What were the most interesting, well-executed storylines of the year and which feuds were the least interesting, terrible ones to watch?

[BEST]: Jeri-KO

[WORST]: Jinder Mahal vs. Shinsuke Nakamura



IN-RING SHOWS

Explanation: Out of WWE's in-ring wrestling content, which programs were your favorite and least favorite?

POSSIBLE OPTIONS: 205 Live, Main Event, NXT, Raw, SmackDown

[BEST]: Monday Night Raw + SmackDown Live

[WORST]: Main Event

TALK or RECAP SHOWS

Explanation: Out of WWE's interview-based content, which programs were your favorite and least favorite?

POSSIBLE OPTIONS: Afterburn, Ask the WWE PC, Bottom Line, Bring it to the Table, Experience, Fallout, Legends with JBL, NXT Insider, Raw Talk, Straight to the Source, Superstar Ink, Table for 3, Talking Smack, This Week in WWE, What's Trending in WWE?, WWE Pop Question, WWE Saturday Night, WWE Sunday Dhamaal, WWE Vintage, WWE Wal3ooha

[BEST]: Bring it to the Table

[WORST]: All of the recap shows (Afterburn, Bottom Line, Experience, etc)

OFFBEAT/OTHER SHOWS

Explanation: Out of WWE's other, miscellaneous and oddball content, which programs were your favorite and least favorite?

POSSIBLE OPTIONS: Fury, Holy Foley, Music Power 10, My Son/Daughter is a WWE Superstar, Ride Along, Top 10, Total Bellas, Total Divas, Southpaw Regional Wrestling, UpUpDownDown, WWE 24, WWE 365, WWE Game Night, WWE List This, WWE My First Job, WWE Story Time, WWE Superstar Impersonation Battle, WWE Then & Now, WWE Unboxed, Z True Comeback Story

[BEST]: WWE 365

[WORST]: Music Power 10

OVERALL PROGRAM OF THE YEAR

Explanation: What were the overall best and worst shows out of all the different programming content WWE provided this year across all their different platforms?

POSSIBLE OPTIONS: all of the choices from the above categories

[BEST]: Monday Night Raw

[WORST]: All the recaps

PAY-PER-VIEW or SPECIAL EVENT

Explanation: What were your favorite and least favorite pay-per-views or special events from the year?

POSSIBLE OPTIONS: United Kingdom Championship Tournament, NXT TakeOver: San Antonio, Royal Rumble, Elimination Chamber, Fastlane, Hall of Fame, NXT TakeOver: Orlando, WrestleMania, Payback, United Kingdom Championship Special, NXT TakeOver: Chicago, Backlash, Extreme Rules, Money in the Bank, Great Balls of Fire, Battleground, NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn III, SummerSlam, Mae Young Classic, No Mercy, Hell in a Cell, TLC, NXT TakeOver: WarGames, Survivor Series, Tribute to the Troops, Clash of Champions

[BEST]: Survivor Series

[WORST]: Extreme Rules + Money in the Bank + Battleground + SummerSlam



MANAGER or VALET

Explanation: This includes anybody who regularly accompanies someone down to the ring in some capacity, but is not their tag team partner in the ring.

POSSIBLE OPTIONS: Alicia Fox, Bob Backlund, Lana, Maria Kanellis, Maryse, Paul Ellering, Paul Heyman, Titus O'Neil, Zelina Vega

[BEST]: Paul Heyman

[WORST]: Maria Kanellis

CELEBRITY APPEARANCE

Explanation: This includes all celebrity appearances who actively interacted with the show as opposed to just sitting ringside.

CELEBRITY: Musical performers at WrestleMania, Rob Gronkowski at WrestleMania, Al Roker at WrestleMania, Josh Duhamel (Raw 6/26), LaVar and LaMelo and Lonzo Ball (Raw 6/26), Code Orange (NXT TakeOver: Brooklyn III)

[BEST]: Rob Gronkowski at WrestleMania

[WORST]: The Ball Family on Monday Night Raw

AUTHORITY FIGURE

Explanation: This includes anybody who was in a position of power over the roster including commissioners, general managers, the chairman and so forth.

AUTHORITY FIGURES: Daniel Bryan, Kurt Angle, Mick Foley, Triple H, Stephanie McMahon, Shane McMahon, Vince McMahon, William Regal

[BEST]: William Regal

[WORST]: Kurt Angle

OTHER/EXTRA CHARACTER

Explanation: This includes all extraneous, ancillary, supporting and oddball characters who don't fit into any other classification.

EXTRA CHARACTERS: Dante the Milano store clerk (SmackDown 1/24), Festival of Friendship showgirls (Raw 2/13), Friendship the Magician (Raw 2/13), Lloyd Peacock (imaginary head of SmackDown mentioned on Talking Smack 2/21), Alicia Fox's gift delivery man, Bayley's teacher Mrs. Flapper (Raw 5/29), Bayley's former best friend Tracy Avalina (Raw 5/29), Bayley's ex-boyfriend Phil Johnson (Raw 5/29), Miz Bears (Raw 6/5 and onward), Rap battle posses (SmackDown 7/4), Fashion Files delivery guy (SmackDown 7/18), Sprinkles the Clown (205 Live 8/22), Fake Miss Elizabeth (SmackDown 9/5), Rusev's pride of Bulgaria guy (SmackDown 9/26)

[BEST]: Miz Bears (Raw June 5th)

[WORST]: Mrs. Flapper, Tracey Avalina and Phil Johnson from Bayley: This is Your Life

ANNOUNCER

Explanation: This includes all in-ring announcers who would introduce wrestlers during their entrances.

POSSIBLE OPTIONS: Andrea D'Marco, Andy Shepherd, Christy St. Cloud, Greg Hamilton, JoJo Offerman, Kayla Braxton, Lilian Garcia (MYC), Mike Rome, Tony Chimel, Vic Joseph

[BEST]: Mike Rome

[WORST]: Christy St. Cloud

BROADCAST CORRESPONDENT

Explanation: This includes all backstage interviewers, panelists and correspondents.

POSSIBLE OPTIONS: Andrea D'Marco, Booker T, Cathy Kelley, Charly Caruso, Christy St. Cloud, Dasha Fuentes, David Otunga, Jerry Lawler, Jimena Sánchez, Kayla Braxton, Maria Menounos, Mike Rome, Moein Al Bastaki, Nathalie Mamo, Peter Rosenberg, Renee Young, Sam Roberts, Scott Stanford, Tom Phillips, Verónica Rodríguez

[BEST]: Renee Young

[WORST]: David Otunga

COMMENTATOR

Explanation: This includes all members of the commentary teams on all brands, including the foreign commentators.

NORMAL COMMENTARY: Austin Aries, Byron Saxton, Corey Graves, David Otunga, Jim Ross, John "Bradshaw" Layfield, Lita, Mauro Ranallo, Michael Cole, Nigel McGuinness, Percy Watson, R-Truth, Tom Phillips, Vic Joseph

FOREIGN COMMENTARY TEAMS: 
Spanish = Carlos Cabrera, Marcelo Rodriguez, Jerry Soto
French = Christophe Agius, Philippe Chereau
German = Tim Haber, Calvin Knie, Carsten Schaefer, Sabastian Hackl, Holger Boschen, Manu Thiele
Japanese = Shun Yamaguchi, Funaki
Russian = Moti Margolin, Zhan Pomerantsev
Portuguese = Marco Alfaro, Roberto Figueroa
Mandarin = Meng Ai, Sean Deng
Hindi = Obaid Kadwani, Shez Sardar

[BEST]: Michael Cole

[WORST]: David Otunga



NEWCOMER

Explanation: The Best/Worst Newcomer award applies to anybody who either made their debut somewhere on the main roster or NXT, or were repackaged into a completely different gimmick with a different name.

NEW TO WWE: Mike Kanellis

NEW OR CALLED UP TO NXT: Adam Cole, Aleister Black, Bobby Fish, Kyle O'Reilly, Ruby Riot, Zelina Vega

UNITED KINGDOM TOURNAMENT: Dan Moloney, Danny Burch, HC Dyer, James Drake, Jordan Devlin, Joseph Conners, Mark Andrews, Pete Dunne, Roy Johnson, Sam Gradwell, Saxon Huxley, Trent Seven, Tucker, Tyler Bate, Tyson T-Bone, Wolfgang

MAE YOUNG CLASSIC TOURNAMENT: Abbey Laith, Ayesha Raymond, Bianca Belair, Candice LeRae, Dakota Kai, Jazzy Gabert, Kairi Sane, Kavita Devi, Kay Lee Ray, Lacey Evans, Marti Belle, Mercedes Martinez, Mia Yim, Miranda Salinas, Nicole Savoy, Piper Niven, Princesa Sugehit, Rachel Evers, Reina González, Renee Michelle, Rhea Ripley, Sage Beckett, Santana Garrett, Sarah Logan, Serena Deeb, Shayna Baszler, Taynara Conti, Tessa Blanchard, Toni Storm, Vanessa Borne, Xia Li, Zeda

[BEST]: Aleister Black

[WORST]: Mike Kanellis

MAIN ROSTER CALL-UP

Explanation: Which of the superstars who moved up from NXT or developmental to the main roster have done the best and the worst with their promotion?

POSSIBLE OPTIONS: The Revival, Tye Dillinger, Shinsuke Nakamura, Elias, Asuka, Sonya Deville, Mandy Rose, Ruby Riot, Liv Morgan, Sarah Logan, Hideo Itami

[BEST]: Elias

[WORST]: The Revival

ON-SCREEN COUPLE

Explanation: Who were the best and worst on-screen couples in a romantic sense?

POSSIBLE OPTIONS: Triple H and Stephanie McMahon, Daniel Bryan and Brie Bella, John Cena and Nikki Bella, Cedric Alexander and Alicia Fox, Rusev and Lana, Dean Ambrose and Renee Young, The Miz and Maryse, Jimmy Uso and Naomi, James Ellsworth and Carmella, Noam Dar and Alicia Fox, Mike and Maria Kanellis

[BEST]: The Miz and Maryse

[WORST]: Mike and Maria Kanellis

TAG TEAM or STABLE

Explanation: Which tag team or stable did you like and hate the most?

MAIN ROSTER: Absolution, American Alpha, Breezango, Chad Gable and Shelton Benjamin, Enzo and Cass, Heath Slater and Rhyno, JeriKO, Kevin Owens and Sami Zayn, Rusev and Aiden English, Rusev and Jinder Mahal, The Ascension, The Bar, The Bludgeon Brothers, The Colons, The Golden Truth, The Good Brothers, The Hardy Boyz, The Hype Bros, The Miztourage, The New Day, The Revival, The Riott Squad, The Shield, The Singh Brothers, The Usos, The Vaudevillains, The Welcoming Committee, Titus Worldwide

NXT: #DIY, SAnitY, The Authors of Pain, TM-61, Heavy Machinery, The Street Profits, Riddick Moss and Tino Sabbatelli, The Ealy Brothers, The Undisputed Era

[BEST]: Jeri-KO

[WORST]: The Golden Truth

HEEL

Explanation: Who was the most hated villain and which superstar failed the most to get the crowd to boo them?

[BEST]: Kevin Owens

[WORST]: Emmalina

BABYFACE

Explanation: Who was the best fan-favorite hero and which superstar wasn't able to pull off being a babyface?

[BEST]: AJ Styles

[WORST]: Aliyah + Dana Brooke

FEMALE SUPERSTAR

Explanation: Which female wrestlers were the cream of the crop and the bottom of the barrel?

MAIN ROSTER AND NXT TALENT: Abbey Laith, Alexa Bliss, Alicia Fox, Aliyah, Asuka, Bayley, Becky Lynch, Bianca Belair, Billie Kay, Carmella, Charlotte, Dakota Kai, Dana Brooke, Ember Moon, Emma, Eva Marie, Kairi Sane, Lacey Evans, Lana, Liv Morgan, Mandy Rose, Maria Kanellis, Mickie James, Naomi, Natalya, Nia Jax, Nikki Bella, Nikki Cross, Paige, Peyton Royce, Reina González, Rhea Ripley, Rosa Mendes, Ruby Riot, Sage Beckett, Sarah Logan, Sasha Banks, Sonya Deville, Summer Rae, Tamina Snuka, Taynara Conti, Vanessa Borne, Xia Li, Zeda

TEMPORARY TALENT (MAE YOUNG CLASSIC): Ayesha Raymond, Candice LeRae, Jazzy Gabert, Kavita Devi, Kay Lee Ray, Marti Belle, Mercedes Martinez, Mia Yim, Miranda Salinas, Nicole Savoy, Piper Niven, Princesa Sugehit, Rachel Evers, Renee Michelle, Santana Garrett, Serena Deeb, Shayna Baszler, Tessa Blanchard, Toni Storm

[BEST]: Alexa Bliss

[WORST]: Aliyah + Dana Brooke

MALE SUPERSTAR

Explanation: Which male wrestlers were the cream of the crop and the bottom of the barrel?

MAIN ROSTER AND NXT TALENT: Adam Cole, Aiden English, AJ Styles, Akam, Akira Tozawa, Aleister Black, Alexander Wolfe, Andrade Almas, Angelo Dawkins, Apollo Crews, Ariya Daivari, Austin Aries, Baron Corbin, Big Cass, Big E, Big Show, Bo Dallas, Bobby Fish, Bobby Roode, Braun Strowman, Bray Wyatt, Brian Kendrick, Brock Lesnar, Buddy Murphy, Cedric Alexander, Cesaro, Cezar Bononi, Chad Gable, Chris Jericho, Curt Hawkins, Curtis Axel, Danny Burch, Darren Young, Dash Wilder, Dean Ambrose, Dolph Ziggler, Drew Gulak, Drew McIntyre, Elias, Enzo Amore, Epico, Eric Young, Fabian Aichner, Fandango, Finn Balor, Goldberg, Goldust, Gran Metalik, Harper, Heath Slater, Hideo Itami, HoHo Lun, Jack Gallagher, Jack Swagger, James Ellsworth, Jason Jordan, Jeff Hardy, Jey Uso, Jimmy Uso, Jinder Mahal, John Cena, Johnny Gargano, Kalisto, Kane, Karl Anderson, Kassius Ohno, Kevin Owens, Killian Dain, Kofi Kingston, Konnor, Kyle O'Reilly, Lars Sullivan, Lince Dorado, Lio Rush, Luke Gallows, Mark Andrews, Mark Henry, Matt Hardy, Mike Kanellis, Mojo Rawley, Montez Ford, Mustafa Ali, Neville, Nick Miller, No Way Jose, Noam Dar, Oney Lorcan, Otis Dozovic, Pete Dunne, Primo, Randy Orton, Rezar, Rhyno, Rich Swann, Riddick Moss, Roderick Strong, Roman Reigns, Rowan, R-Truth, Rusev, Sami Zayn, Samir Singh, Samoa Joe, Sawyer Fulton, Scott Dawson, Seth Rollins, Shane Thorne, Sheamus, Shelton Benjamin, Shinsuke Nakamura, Simon Gotch, Sin Cara, Sunil Singh, Tajiri, Tino Sabbatelli, TJP, The Miz, The Undertaker, Titus O'Neil, Tommaso Ciampa, Tony Nese, Trent Seven, Tucker Knight, Tye Dillinger, Tyler Bate, Tyler Breeze, Velveteen Dream, Viktor, Wesley Blake, Wolfgang, Xavier Woods, Zack Ryder + candidates from the released stars list

TEMPORARY TALENT (UK TOURNAMENT): Dan Moloney, HC Dyer, James Drake, Jordan Devlin, Joseph Conners, Roy Johnson, Sam Gradwell, Saxon Huxley, Tucker, Tyson T-Bone

SUPPLEMENTAL NXT TALENT: Adrian Jaoude, Babatunde, Big Boa, Brennan Williams, Bronson Matthews, Chad Lail, Dallas Harper, Dan Matha, Demitrius Bronson, Donovan Dijak, Gabriel Ealy, Jeet Rama, Kishan Raftar, Kona Reeves, Marcel Barthel, Ming, Raul Mendoza, Steve Cutler, Tian Bing, Uriel Ealy

[BEST]: Braun Strowman

[WORST]: Mike Kanellis

SUPERSTAR OF THE YEAR

Explanation: Judging as a co-ed award out of both the men and women wrestlers who were in the company at some point, who was the absolute best and worst in the company this year?

POSSIBLE OPTIONS: all men and women listed in the above two categories

[BEST]: Braun Strowman

[WORST]: Mike Kanellis



The results from your votes will be calculated based on the poll and are revealed in the podcast video below.

"DID YOU KNOW" JOKE OF THE YEAR

POSSIBLE OPTIONS ARE INCLUDED IN THE POLL

[MY CHOICES FOR BEST]: Episode #274, Episode #280, Episode #283, Episode #289, Episode #292

[MY CHOICES FOR WORST]: Episode #287

SEGMENT

POSSIBLE OPTIONS ARE INCLUDED IN THE POLL

[MY CHOICES FOR BEST]: Awards, Call the Spot on the Card, Mailbag, Play the Game, Sexiest Superstars Tournament

[MY CHOICES FOR WORST]: Ask Him, Rest Hold

CO-HOST OF THE YEAR

POSSIBLE OPTIONS: Angie Williams, Calen Ferris, Callum Wiggins, Caroline Oliveira, Drew White, Johnna Wago, Mike Paden, Shaun Walker, Stephen Wago

[BEST]: I abstained from voting.

[WORST]: I abstained from voting.

YEAR-IN-REVIEW OF STATISTICS

I'll be giving a breakdown of some of the advancements that have happened over the past year with the Smark Out Moment brand.